Experts: Eskom will drag us all down with it

Eskom’s financial problems will hit already- under-strain South African consumers hard – even more so as those consumers are currently faced with escalating fuel hikes.

So said analysts after the power utility announced its losses on Monday. In the next three financial years, they speculated, electricity hikes could go up by 110%.

Energy analyst Ted Blom said electricity consumers should prepare for the worst.

“By 2019/20 financial year expect a 30% electricity hike, followed by 50% the following year and 30% the other year. This is a reality. Eskom over the past 10 years has come out with a high tariff raising strategy which has enabled them to fleece the country’s economy of some R1.3-trillion,” said Blom.

Another analyst, Somadoda Fikeni, said the poor will suffer the most.

“The poor are the most to be affected by this as Eskom will try to recoup their losses. We will see price hikes while at the same time they are failing to diagnose what their problem is,” said Fikeni.